Secretary Blinken’s Call with Japanese Foreign Minister Hayashi

F.P. Report

WASHINGTON: Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken spoke today with Japanese Foreign Minister Hayashi Yoshimasa and they jointly condemned the DPRK’s March 24 Intercontinental ballistic missile launch as a clear violation of multiple UN Security Council resolutions. 

This provocation, which follows two ICBM tests earlier this year, further demonstrates the threat the DPRK’s unlawful weapons of mass destruction and ballistic missile programs pose to the DPRK’s neighbors and the broader international community. 

Secretary Blinken reaffirmed the U.S.-Japan Alliance as the cornerstone of peace, security, and prosperity in the Indo-Pacific and beyond, and committed to trilateral cooperation with Japan and the Republic of Korea towards the complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula. 

The Secretary reiterated the United States’ commitment to the defense of Japan and the Republic of Korea remains ironclad.